Uden Johansson Makes Olympic Debut With Team Sweden in 1-0 Victory Over Japan

SOCHI, Russia, - Quinnipiac women's ice hockey forward Erica Uden Johansson (Sundsvall, Sweden) made her 2014 Olympic debut Sunday, skating for her native Sweden in an opening round game against Japan. Uden Johansson made an immediate impact with her National Team as she registered a team and game-high four shots in the Swedes' 1-0 victory over Japan in Group B opening round action from the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Sweden will next play Germany on Tuesday at 5:00 a.m. E.T., which lost to Russia 4-1 on Sunday.

Uden Johansson, who is playing in her second Olympics as a member of Team Sweden, saw just 9:45 of ice time but was an offensive force as she totaled a game-high four shots. Sweden's captain Jenni Asserholt deflected in a power-play goal in the first period while goalie Valentina Wallner made 19 saves in net to key their 1-0 victory as they are currently tied with host Russia for the top spot in Group B.

Sweden is currently ranked No. 6 in the world in women's hockey. Uden Johansson helped lead the team to a fourth place finish in the 2010 Olympics while the Swedes also are the only country to have beaten one of the women's hockey superpowers, the United States and Canada, in Olympic competition. Sweden shocked the United States, 3-2, in the Semifinals in Turin in 2006, overcoming significant odds to claim the silver medal.

The Olympic women's ice hockey competition wrapped up their opening round games today and will continue competition until Feb. 20. The eight-team tournament starts with teams competing in groups of four. Sweden is in "Group B" with No. 4 Russia, No. 7 Germany and No. 10 Japan. After three games of round-robin play, the top two teams in Group B advance to the quarterfinals (Feb. 15) where they will take on the third and fourth place finishers in Group A (No. 1 USA, No. 2 Canada, No. 3 Finland, No. 5 Switzerland). The top two teams in Group A advance directly to the semifinals (Feb. 17).

The winners of those two quarterfinal games advance to the semifinals on Feb. 17, while the four teams not in the semis compete in the classification round for spots five through eight. Classification games take place on Feb. 16 and Feb. 18.

The gold medal game and the bronze medal game are on Feb. 20 at Bolshoy Ice Dome.

Uden Johansson has a wealth of international experience having played for Sweden in two International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Women's World Championships (2009, 2012) as well as her appearance in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. She has led Team Sweden to a pair of fourth place finishes (2009 World Championships, 2010 Olympics) and a fifth place result (2012 World Championships). Throughout her three-plus stints with Team Sweden, Uden Johansson has posted six points (three goals, three assists).

The Bobcats' would-be senior forward will return to Quinnipiac for her final season in 2014-15 and has been an ultra-productive player throughout her three years so far as a Bobcat. She has finished each season with double figure goals and assists while ranking sixth all-time at Quinnipiac with 71 points (32 goals, 39 assists) in 87 games with one full year of eligibility remaining.